1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to disc brake assemblies, and more specifically to a disc brake rotor that can be secured to a hub using a quick-release mechanism. It additionally is related to a disc brake assembly having such a rotor.
2. Discussion of the Related Art
Disc brake assemblies are attached to wheel hubs in order to provide a mechanism for braking the wheel of a vehicle. With particular regard to bicycles, the disc brake assembly normally includes a rotor including an inner rotor carrier that is mounted on the hub and an outer rub area. The rub area and the carrier may be integrated or formed from connected components. Further, a braking mechanism, such as a brake caliper having opposed brake pads, is engageable with the rotor by selectively pressing the pads against the rub area.
In order to make disc brake assemblies more adaptable for use with bicycles, a number of prior art assemblies have been developed. However, a shortcoming of the majority of these bicycle disc brake assemblies is that the rotor is fixedly attached to the hub in a manner which does not allow the rotor to be easily attached to or removed from the hub. This can be problematic, particularly if field replacement is required.
One prior art design for a bicycle disc brake assembly that enables the rotor disc to be quickly removed from the bicycle hub is disclosed in Kanehisa U.S. Pat. No. 6,371,252, which is incorporated herein by reference. In this design, the rotor carrier includes a splined inner surface which is positionable around a complementary splined end of a bicycle hub such that the carrier, and hence the rotor as a whole, rotate in conjunction with the hub. The carrier is held on the end of the hub by a separate locking ring having a threaded section disposed on one side of the ring. The locking ring is insertable through the rotor carrier to threadedly engage mating threads in the interior of the hub, such that the rotor carrier is retained on the hub between the locking ring and the hub.
However, the step of threading the locking ring into engagement with the hub is time consuming and can sometimes be difficult, as the locking ring needs to be properly aligned with the hub in order for the locking ring to securely engage the hub. A special tool is also required to thread the locking ring onto and off of the hub, further hindering assembly.
Therefore, it is desirable to develop a disc brake rotor that can be easily mounted on and removed from a splined hub without any tools. It is also desirable to develop a quick mount disc brake rotor that has fewer pieces than previously-available rotors.